Israel-Palestine live: Israel and Palestinians agree to truce, hostage deal

Israeli forces have encircled three hospitals in northern Gaza City where displaced civilians and journalists have taken refuge.

Palestinian health ministry officials say Al-Rantisi Hospital, Al-Nasr Children’s Hospital, and the psychiatric hospital - all part of the Rantisi medical compound - have been surrounded by Israeli tanks and soldiers, who are telling all people inside to flee.

The siege follows a series of overnight air strikes on several of Gaza’s hospitals, including Al-Shifa, the biggest hospital in the territory, which houses large numbers of displaced and wounded people.

The army reportedly targeted the hospital's maternity ward and outpatient clinic, with footage showing bloodied people on the floor surrounded by cries for help.

“Why, oh God why,” screamed a girl with her face covered in blood following the strike on the clinic.

Read more: Israeli troops encircle Gaza hospitals, bomb Al-Shifa again

Over 1,000 officials in the US Agency for International Development (USAID) have signed a letter urging the Biden administration to call for an immediate ceasefire.

"As development, public health, and humanitarian assistance professionals, we are alarmed and disheartened at the numerous violations of international law; laws which aim to protect civilians, medical and media personnel, as well as schools, hospitals, and places of worship," the letter, which was seen by Reuters, reads.

Signatories' names were hidden, but they include officials in the agency's bureaus in Washington as well as others around the world.

USAID did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Good afternoon MEE readers,

Friday marked another bloody day in Gaza after Israel targeted hospital facilities and a school where people are seeking refuge in the besieged enclave.

In the early hours of Friday, Israeli forces shelled the courtyard of Al-Shifah Hospital, the largest medical complex in Gaza.

The attack, which hit the outpatient clinic and maternity ward, left several people killed and wounded, according to health officials.

Israeli tanks then encircled three other hospitals, trapping thousands of patients and displaced people inside.

In the afternoon, Israeli snipers opened fire at a fifth hospital in the city, killing at least one person and wounding others, including children.

Additionally, Israeli fire hit a school and displaced people fleeing on the so-called "safe corridor", killing scores more.

Here are other updates you might have missed:

• The Israeli military killed 260 Palestinians in the past 24 hours, raising the total death toll to over 11,000.

• Israeli forces detained two ambulance drivers heading to northern Gaza.

• A UN official said: "If there is a hell on earth today, its name is northern Gaza".

• The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees said 100 of its staff members have been killed amid Israeli bombardment in Gaza.

• Global opposition against Israel’s onslaught in Gaza continues, with protests planned this weekend in Berlin, London, and other European capitals.

The director of Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital, Mohammed Abu Selmeyah, said at least 20 Palestinians had been killed after Israel struck the Al-Buraq school in Gaza City. 

At least one Palestinian was killed and 20 wounded after Israeli snipers opened fire at Al-Quds hospital in Gaza City on Friday, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said. 

The majority of those wounded were children.  

"[Israeli] occupation snipers targeted al-Quds Hospital and directly shot at those present in the building," the PRCS said.  

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said Israeli snipers were shooting at Gaza's Al-Quds hospital on Friday. 

Local media reported fierce gun battles taking place near the hospital, located in Gaza City. 

Israeli fighter jets on Friday bombed Palestinians fleeing north Gaza on the "safe corridor" designated by the military. 

Thousands of people have been travelling on foot along the Salah al-Din Road towards southern Gaza amid dire humanitarian conditions in the north, caused by a month-long Israeli blockade, shelling and ground attacks. 

Several people were killed or wounded in the bombing on Friday, according to initial media reports.

When a white tent was erected on 6 November in front of Israel's parliament, it seemed like it would be taken back down immediately as Jerusalem municipal officials said it didn't have the necessary approvals.

But eventually one inspector signalled to the others to leave and the tent remained.

Maoz Yinon, Ya'akov Godo and their friends settled down with a clear statement: "Until Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves, we will stay here."

The pair are familiar faces in the protest scene in Israel and are known as peace activists. 

Together they protect Palestinian shepherds in the Jordan Valley region from settler violence, transport Palestinian children from Gaza and the West Bank to Israel for medical treatments, amongst other forms of activism. 

Both men see Netanyahu as the major cause of the massacres of 7 October, which they say are a direct result of the free hand he gave settlers in the occupied West Bank.

Godo's eldest son and Yinon's parents were killed during the attack led by Hamas, yet both believe war, destruction and revenge are not the answer.

"I am a member of Kibbutz Naan; until a month ago I was the father of four sons, today I am the father of only three sons, as my eldest son, Tom, who was 52 years old, was killed in a Hamas attack in Kibbutz Kissufim," Godo said.

Read more: 'We have not cried enough': An encounter with two bereaved Israeli peace activists in Jerusalem

The Israeli military killed 260 Palestinians in the past 24 hours, the Palestinian health ministry said on Friday afternoon. 

This takes the death toll to 11,078 people killed since 7 October, including 4,506 children, 3,027 women and 678 elderly people. At least 27,490 people have been wounded.

Around 2,700 people are still missing in Gaza, including 1,500 children. The vast majority of these people are believed to be dead and buried under rubble.

Additionally, Israeli forces and settlers have killed at least 174 Palestinians in the West Bank in the same period - a sharp rise from the monthly death toll in the occupied territory.

The UN refugee agency for Palestinian refugees, the Unrwa, has confirmed over 100 of its staff members have been killed amid relentless Israeli bombardment in Gaza. 

Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of Unrwa, said on Friday he was "devastated" by the news . 

"Over 100 Unrwa colleagues confirmed killed in 1 month. Parents, teachers, nurses, doctors, support staff," Lazzarini said. 

Israeli forces detained two ambulance drivers in the Gaza Strip on Friday, the Palestinian health ministry has said.

Ashraf al-Qudra, the ministry's spokesperson, said the drivers were heading to northern Gaza from the south.

They were detained despite coordination with the International Committee of the Red Cross about their movement, al-Qudra added.

Israeli ground troops have been in control of the two main roads connecting Gaza's north to south for over a week. 

Opinion by Mohammed Alaloul - I am a photojournalist. I was born in February 1987, got married in 2009, and had my firstborn son, Ahmad, the following year. Several more children followed: Rahaf in 2012, Kanan in 2017 and Qais in 2019. Thank God I had Adam in November 2022; he is the only one who has survived.

I went to university and followed my dream to become a journalist. I wore the vest and reported from the field, covering wars and the Great March of Return. But I could never have imagined what was to come in the current war.

I could never have imagined, even in my worst nightmares, that my own house would be bombed; that I could lose my young brothers, my sister, my children, my nephews - all of them, just like that. 

I cannot describe the pain in my heart; there are no words. I feel broken. My heart is broken, my back is broken. Thank God for what remains

- Mohammed Alaloul, Palestinian journalist 

We used to share dreams and memories. In an instant, the whole house died.   

My home and family were targeted without any warning or an ounce of mercy. Our home was bombed heavily.

When this happened, I was at work. My job often keeps me away from home for days at a time, and when I am home, I am generally exhausted - but at least there was always the comfort of knowing my kids and nephews were around.

They always used to beg me to take care while I was on duty, and not to take any risks. But they were sleeping peacefully in the safety of their home when they were bombarded and killed. 

For years, I went to work, risking my life to take photos and report the news, so that I could feed my kids. Today, I am left with nothing - my home and family have been destroyed. I cannot describe the pain in my heart; there are no words. I feel broken. My heart is broken, my back is broken. Thank God for what remains.

Read more: I used to cry for other people's children. Now I cry for my own

A Norwegian doctor who previously volunteered in Gaza sent an impassioned message to the United States president on Friday asking him to stop the Israeli targeting of hospitals. 

“Can you hear the screams from Al-Shifa hospital? Can you hear the screams of innocent people? Refugees sheltering, trying to find a safe place, being bombed by the Israeli attack forces this morning?" Mads Gilbert said in a video posted on X. 

He addressed his message to US President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken with the sound of screaming Palestinians heard in the background following Israeli bombing on hospitals in Gaza on Friday.

The spokesperson of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) described life in northern Gaza as "hell on earth" as Israel deepens its blockade and bombardment. 

Jens Laerke expressed his frustration that no aid had reached northern Gaza in over one month.

"We cannot drive to the north at the current point, which is of course deeply frustrating because we know there are several hundred thousand people who remain in the north," Laerke said. 

"If there is a hell on earth today, its name is northern Gaza," he added. "It is a life of fear by day and darkness at night. And what do you tell your children in such a situation, it's almost unimaginable - that the fire they see in the sky is out to kill them?"

Israeli forces shelled the courtyards of Al-Shifa hospital, the largest medical complex in the besieged enclave, in the early hours of Friday.

The attack, which hit the outpatient clinic and the maternity ward, left serveal people killed and wounded according to health officials.  

Thousands of Palestinians have been seeking refuge at Al-Shifa from Israel's onslaught.